Metascore
69

Generally favorable reviews - based on 18 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 18
  2. Negative: 0 out of 18
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  1. Ultimately, her album represents an admirable stab at the mainstream by an indie artist who isn't afraid to dabble in the dark arts of classic songwriting, instrumental ability, and professional production.
  2. She's ripe to land a song in an Apple commercial and hit it big, but you can't fault her. The girl knows how to make you look.
  3. Catching a Tiger (Fat Possum), her full-length debut, comes most alive with a handful of songs about reaching for someone who isn't there (e.g., "In Sleep," which evokes Fleetwood Mac) or evading someone who is (e.g., "Loosen the Knot," more of a power-pop surge).
  4. This debut only strengthens Lissie's potential to become one of folk music's newest sirens.
  5. 68
    Cohesion will come soon; she's got all the nuts and bolts.
  6. Her magnetic debut album doesn't aim to break new ground, but her rustic, Stevie Nicks–ish voice unifies the myriad sounds that position her as both a radio-ready alt-country chick and a young, hip folkstress who pulls off online covers of Lady Gaga and Kid Cudi.
  7. On Tiger there's more than a whiff of tequila in the air-yellowy-green shots knocked back fast followed by hazy mornings filled with nagging regrets. This could perhaps be considered "folk" in some generous sense of the word, but let's not be afraid to call it what it really is: unbridled, unselfconscious, swirling, head-pounding pop.
  8. Catching a Tiger is pretty darn eclectic with the quality dial rarely dipping below "Danger High Voltage".
  9. Lissie does not fully earn her an-artist-apart stripes with Catching a Tiger, but all the signs are here. Give the girl a second and she'll steal your heart; give her another album and she will, quite possibly, become untouchable.
  10. Catching A Tiger has its moments of spontaneity, marking Lissie's talent for songwriting and blending genres, but also of calculated engineering, designed to make her into the Next Big Female Songwriting Sensation.
  11. 70
    Equally comfortable with dance grooves ("When I'm Alone"), country-tinged laments ("Everywhere I Go"), and epic pop dramas ("Loosen the Knot"), Illinois-bred, California-based Elisabeth Maurus is a promising work in progress on this smoothly produced debut.
  12. Uncut
    80
    There's shades of both Stevie Nicks and Neko Case in Lissie's voice, a resplendent instrument that's both husky and mellow, attuned equally to the epic and the intimate. But Really the sound and songs here are a testament to her unaffected individuality. [Aug 2010, p.86]
User Score
8.4

Universal acclaim- based on 14 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 14
  2. Negative: 0 out of 14
  1. Sep 25, 2012
    7
    You can't help but fall in love with Lissie. Her look (natural beauty). Her feel (free spirit). That VOICE (so much power and soul)! HerYou can't help but fall in love with Lissie. Her look (natural beauty). Her feel (free spirit). That VOICE (so much power and soul)! Her songs (quite the collection and well-crafted). My only problem, and it's a big one... The album is over-produced, too much polish and shine. Her live performances top all of these tracks. It's still solid and highly recommended, especially in comparison to everything else out there. Full Review »
  2. May 29, 2011
    7
    This album is really fantastic, every song on the album is amazing. She has an intense voice. She is clearly the revelation of 2010. The newThis album is really fantastic, every song on the album is amazing. She has an intense voice. She is clearly the revelation of 2010. The new face of folk. The next critically acclaimed artist. The lyrics are magnific and the bridge is so exciting, when it starts to heat up at the end ... orgasmic! Her voice is so perfect and beautiful! Full Review »